Chapter 1389 – South Sheng, The Autumn of Chaos (Fifteen)
“The Southern Barbarians may be brutal, but they aren’t entirely without value.” Lü Zheng said displeased, “Our Lord’s military strength doesn’t hold an advantage among the lords. If we can tame these captives and have them charge into battle for our Lord, that would be a significant boost. Even if they refuse to serve our Lord, these strong and robust barbarians are invaluable labor—quarrying, paving roads, and cultivating wastelands… all require manpower.”
In chaotic times, it’s not just about being able to fight; one also needs to build and manage. Engaging in fruitless and reckless warfare isn’t the right path.
Massacring captives is a foolish approach.
Unless in special circumstances, such as a lack of resources where killing captives is unavoidable, the standard protocol is to treat captives as cheap labor and exploit their remaining value. Assign them to hard labor tasks and use the cheapest investment to reap the richest returns.
Killing all the captives without hesitation results in future enemies fighting to the death—after all, surrender leads to death; it’s better to fight fiercely till the end.
What other significance does that stir within the enemy, aside from fueling their determination to resist?
“You don’t need to preach such principles to me.” Ge Lin sneered, revealing a chill in his smile, “You’re from Dongqing, where the Northern Plains army was crushed before it could wreak havoc, so you obviously can’t relate… Every South Sheng citizen detests the Southern Barbarians. Their existence is the greatest disrespect to those who have perished! Don’t talk about killing fifty thousand captives today; even if it were five hundred thousand, there would be no hesitation. Your father and son haven’t had their heads displayed on a horse’s back by the Southern Barbarians, nor have your mother and wife been subjected to humiliation after humiliation and mockery. You haven’t experienced these things, so how can you understand the hatred of a country razed and a family destroyed?”
Ge Lin’s words were quite the insult, and even Lü Zheng couldn’t help but feel a bit of anger.
“Flower Yuan!” he shouted in fury.
Ge Lin retorted, “You’re furious over mere words…”
Lü Zheng hadn’t yet noticed the faint glint of killing intent in Ge Lin’s eyes.
Before he could react, Yang Tao called out from a distance, and Ge Lin shot a bitter glare at Lü Zheng.
In a daze, Ge Lin’s dominant persona retreated as his true self emerged.
Yang Tao glanced at the departing figure of Flower Yuan and frowned, “Mr. Lü, you should be cautious.”
Lü Zheng was puzzled, “What does Lord Zheng Ze mean by that?”
Yang Tao said, “Just now, that person seemed to harbor killing intent towards you. If I hadn’t shouted, who knows…”
He wasn’t trying to incite discord.
Yang Tao was known for his boldness and righteousness, but his caution was somewhat lacking.
Lü Zheng narrowed his pupils, hesitating, “After all, we are colleagues. How could he dare to kill brazenly?”
Yang Tao said, “That’s hard to say. Flower Yuan gives off a strange vibe, as if he’s suddenly changed into a different person.”
From what he understood, Flower Yuan was a standard scholar who couldn’t even shoot an arrow properly. Where did this aura of killing come from?
Such a menacing air could only be possessed by someone who has battled for years on the battlefield.
Lü Zheng didn’t voice his suspicion about Flower Yuan’s mental instability, but he had nonetheless grown wary; after all, a madman’s actions cannot be measured by common sense.
This victory marked a watershed moment in the war between the barbarian coalition and the four Southern Barbarian tribes.
The former grew stronger with each battle, while the latter began to falter.
With each defeat, thousands of young men from the Southern Barbarians were captured, and the next outcome was invariably death.
As the war reached a boiling point, what Lü Zheng feared most came to pass.
The coalition’s attitude towards captives served only to ignite the Southern Barbarians’ resolve to fight to the death.
With many young men perishing in battle, the women and children of the barbarians also took to the front lines, surprisingly stalling the coalition’s advance.
Even so, the lords of the coalition remained stubborn, insisting on the decision to exterminate all captives.
Yang Tao wished to oppose this, but over half of his troops were from South Sheng, and as their lord, he couldn’t ignore their opinions.
In just two months, nearly 150,000 Southern Barbarian captives had been killed.
Summer had arrived in the blink of an eye.
The scorching sun had taken a toll on the coalition’s soldiers, while the previously weakened Southern Barbarian tribes had grown bolder in battle.
The scales that once tilted in favor of the coalition gradually began to lean towards the Southern Barbarians.
Yan Lin was quite pessimistic about the current situation.
“If things continue like this, the coalition’s stubbornness will inevitably lead to a counterattack from the Southern Barbarians—”
Yang Tao’s expression was grave, “It’s hard to say… In these recent battles, the coalition has suffered significant casualties, which is extremely unfavorable for our forces.”
The Southern Barbarians were already brutal in their fighting style, and with the added mindset of “death before dishonor,” their combat effectiveness soared.
This created a rather awkward situation—despite being gravely injured, the Southern Barbarian tribes became even more difficult to handle.
Sometimes, Yang Tao couldn’t fathom what the coalition aimed to achieve.
Killing all the Southern Barbarian captives for the sake of revenge for South Sheng ultimately claimed even more innocent lives.
The coalition’s misfortunes didn’t stop there; after a rainy storm, some soldiers began suffering from headaches, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Initially, the military doctor thought it was just a few soldiers reacting poorly to the environment. Days passed, and the number of afflicted soldiers kept rising, even resulting in some dying from diarrhea. It was then that everyone realized something was amiss, but by then, the illness had already spread, and many had fallen ill…
Compelled by the circumstances, they could only gather the sick soldiers in one place for care; unfortunately, the situation showed no signs of improvement, and soldiers continued to die daily.
No one knew where the source of the outbreak came from!
Wait, there was perhaps one person who knew.
Flower Yuan lounged to escape the heat, his icy gaze seeming to be laced with poison, lowering the surrounding air temperature compared to other areas.
If Lü Zheng had been present, he would have understood that this colleague had indeed fallen into madness once again.
Indeed, the personality active now was the true Flower Yuan’s “brother,” who once swindled Huang Song of millions of stone grain.
“Sir, the student has finished reading.”
Inside Flower Yuan’s tent, apart from himself, there was also An Huan’s son, the rightful young master.
The young boy looked at Flower Yuan, his expression a bit hesitant, “Sir, there is something the student doesn’t understand…”
Flower Yuan glanced at him, asking, “What is it?”
“In recent days, a plague has spread in the camp. I was wondering if this epidemic might be related to the coalition’s drinking water?” The young boy hesitantly said, “Not only our forces have experienced large-scale outbreaks; according to reports, similar symptoms have also appeared among the Southern Barbarian tribes…”
If not for this, the Southern Barbarian tribes would have long taken advantage of the coalition’s weakened state to launch a counterattack.
“How did you come to this conclusion?” Flower Yuan asked.
“Previously, I accompanied you to discuss alliances with Lord Lan Ting of Dongqing.” The young boy said, “I noticed their camp’s drinking water had to be boiled before consumption, and food was cooked in hot water as well. Even for cleaning soldiers’ wounds, the water was boiled multiple times… When I inquired out of curiosity, they said it was a rule set by Lord Lan Ting. Because the water contains dark and ominous substances that can’t be seen by the naked eye, but are harmful to the human body. Once these substances enter the body through the mouth, it can easily lead to plagues…”
Flower Yuan responded with a soft “Oh,” withholding his opinions.
